Electrical connectors for use, for example, in telephone installations, generally comprise a wired connector, a jack frame attached thereto, and a modular plug attached to the end of the telephone wires, for example, insertable into the jack frame electrical connection to the connector. Such a connector is shown and described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,096,442 of Arnett et al. and is herewith incorporated by reference in this specification.
The insulation displacement connector as shown in Arnett et al. patent comprises, in detail, a connector member having a plurality of fiat elongated wires which are the connecting terminals for the assembly. The fiat wires are each connected to insulation displacement connectors, each of which has a pair of opposed bifurcated contact fingers into each one of which the insulated wires leading to the connector is inserted. The bifurcadon cuts through the insulation on the wire and makes both electrical and mechanical contact therewith, thereby holding the wire firmly in place. In addition, the connector has a row of wire receiving slots on each side of the centerline of the connectors which allow the wires to be driven down into the bifurcated slot. A dielectric cover surrounds the jack frame and connector assembly both for electrical insulation and physical support. The jack frame and the modular plug, together with the insulation displacement connector, form a standard modular jack which meets the requirement of the FCC Registration Rules. Up to six such modular jack arrangements may be mounted in a single conventional wall plate and fit into a "gangable single device box" such as is specified in Publication 051 of the National Electrical Manufacturers' Association (NEMA).
One such standard type connector, as shown in the aforementioned Arnett et al. patent, has provision for eight leads into the connector, each of which has to be inserted into a corresponding bifurcated contact. Thus, the installer of a single wall plate having provision for six modular connectors must make forty-eight such connections. In the case of a newly constructed building, for example, several hundred such plates may have to be installed, thus a single telephone wiring installer may be called upon to make several thousand such individual connections. Where the entire process is performed by hand, the fatigue factor is daunting. As a consequence, there have been numerous attempts in the prior art to reduce the amount of manual labor involved in making the connections to the modular jack. One device for accomplishing this is an insertion cap which is designed to force the leads to be connected down into the bifurcated connector when the installer fits the cap over the connector portion of the modular jack and presses down. Such an insertion cap generally connects four such leads by forcing them into their respective bifurcated insulation displacement fingers, thus two insertion caps are required for each modular connector. As a consequence, the manual labor, and primarily the exertion of pressure by the installer, is reduced by as much as a factor of four. However, in a large installation, the installer must still do an intolerably large number of such operations and consequently, is still subject to fatigue. There have been insertion caps capable of making more than four insulation displacement connections simultaneously but which still require the exertion of pressure by the installer.
One prior art arrangement that relieves the installer from having to exert as much pressure on his part is an impact tool which is used to drive each wire in turn into its corresponding bifurcated connector slot. The use of such a tool permits the installer to pretrim the leads to their proper length and then to drive them into their corresponding slot with one actuation of the impact tool per lead. The tool impacts the wire only once per actuation, and in the hands of a skillful installer, its use materially reduces the manual effort on the part of the installer and the time involved to complete each modular connector. When the impact tool is used, the insertion cap is not necessary, however, it may be used to hold the wires in place after connection is made, or to protect the connections.
It has also been proposed that simple pliers be used to force the insertion caps into place, driving the leads down into the bifurcated fingers. Such use of a pair of pliers still necessitates the exertion of force by the installer, hence, it is not a complete answer to the fatigue problem. In addition, where the connector is already mounted to the plate, as will often be the case, pliers cannot be used because of the lack of available space in which to manipulate them. On the other hand, the impact tool can be used.
Another often attempted solution to the connection problem has involved the complete redesign of the modular connector, at least that portion thereof that involves connecting the several leads into the connector portion of the jack. Such redesigns have met with varying degrees of success, but the very operation of re-designing entails engineering expense, added manufacturing expense, and obtaining approval from the various governmental bodies involved. It is preferable that a solution be found that does not require any alteration of the standard modular connector, that relieves the installer of a large portion of any manual installation steps, and that materially reduces the time involved in completely wiring and installing a modular connector.